This application is related to the following commonly-owned co-pending design patent applications: xe2x80x9cPlayer Interface and Tray for a Gaming Device,xe2x80x9d Ser. No. 29/130,983, now patent No. D450,094; and xe2x80x9cPlayer Interface With Bolster for a Gaming Device,xe2x80x9d Ser. No. 29/130,980, now patent No. D451,153.
The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, and more particularly to a gaming device having a cabinet with a door with a moveable and/or a removable bolster.
Space in gaming areas on a casino floor or otherwise is at a premium. To maximize gaming activity, gaming device owners desire to place as many gaming machines or devices as possible in the gaming area and provide as small a space as possible between adjacent machines. Maintenance people and operators, however, must gain access to the interior of the device from time to time. Gaming devices require routine maintenance and servicing. Operators must intermittently load, unload and service the gaming device hoppers. Gaming devices consequently include a cabinet having a front door which provides access to the gaming device.
Older gaming devices were generally equipped with flat front cabinets. An operator could access the gaming device interior through a front door hinged to the cabinet, which opened without hitting or interfering with any adjacent device. The older machines enabled casinos to place the gaming devices in close proximity to each other, approximately six inches (or less) apart.
More recently, however, gaming devices have been ergonomically designed with player interfaces and bolsters that protrude from the front door of the gaming device cabinet. The bolsters enable the player to rest their arms and partial body weight on the machine to achieve a more comfortable temporary or semi-permanent position. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,805, which issued on Dec. 19, 2000, discloses an ergonomic hand rest for gaming machines.
While these interfaces and bolsters are more comfortable and appealing to players, they take up more space in the gaming area. As illustrated in FIG. 3, accessing the interior of the ergonomic gaming devices 10 still requires opening a front door 49 of a cabinet 11. The bolster 50 extending from the opened door 49 will interfere with or engage the adjacent gaming device 10 when an operator opens the door 49. This interference limits or prohibits play on the adjacent device 10 and limits the opening of the door 49, which in turn inhibits access to the interior of the gaming device 10 and impedes service of the gaming device.
One solution is to remove the gaming device from the gaming area for service. This is prohibitively expensive and disruptive to the patrons. Another solution is to provide access to the interior through the back of the gaming device. This requires that the gaming device be pulled away from any surrounding devices to permit access to the interior. Yet another solution is to laterally space the gaming devices farther apart. This is not a preferred solution from the point of view of the gaming device owners. A further solution is to return to less ergonomic designs (i.e., gaming devices with generally flat fronts). However, such less ergonomic designs are not attractive to the patrons and therefore generally receive less play. Another solution is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,805. This provides a hand rest with opposing support arms which are adapted to rotate above the gaming device. This design is impractical for upright gaming devices and for gaming devices having toppers. This design also adds substantial costs to the manufacture of gaming devices.
Accordingly, a need exists to provide a gaming device with front door access and an ergonomic bolster that can be accessed without interfering with adjacent machines. The front door should allow an operator to have full access to the gaming device.
The present invention overcomes the above shortcomings by providing a front face or front door of a gaming device with a positionally adjustable bolster. The bolster may be described alternatively herein as xe2x80x9cadjustable,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9cpositionally adjustable,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9cmoveablexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cremovable.xe2x80x9d For brevity, the bolster is referred to herein as xe2x80x9cmoveablexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cadjustable.xe2x80x9d However, the scope of the present invention is not intended to be limited by the use of such term or any other abbreviated terms used herein to describe the present invention, components, steps or processes thereof. The present invention generally provides a gaming device having a cabinet with a front door with a moveable or removable bolster. The front door is preferably pivotally connected to the gaming device using hinges and facilitates access to the interior of the gaming machine.
The bolster is moveably or removably connected to the front door of the gaming device using a moveable or releasable mechanism. In one embodiment, the bolster moves relative to the front door by a rotating or sliding mechanism. In another embodiment, the bolster is removed from the front cabinet using a releasable locking mechanism.
More specifically, one embodiment of the present invention provides a gaming device having a front door that has a moveable and/or removable bolster that rotates, moves or swings out of the way, so that an operator may open the door without the bolster hitting the bolster of an adjacent gaming device. The front door is pivotally connected to the gaming device using one or more hinges and facilitates access to the interior of the gaming machine. The moveable bolster pivotally attaches to the door. The present invention includes alternative pivoting device embodiments. In one preferred embodiment, when unlocked, the bolster automatically swings open to a preliminary angle, whereby the operator lifts the bolster to the predefined operating angle. In one alternative embodiment, when unlocked, the bolster automatically swings open to the predefined operating angle.
In one embodiment, the door of the present invention may be partially opened without moving the attached ergonomic bolster. The operator opens the door partially and pulls a release knob that unlocks the bolster. In both pivoting device embodiments, the bolster automatically springs open at least to a preliminary angle so that the door does not automatically re-lock when the operator releases the release knob. The preferred pivoting device embodiment includes a compression spring that pivots the bolster through a small angle, for example, five degrees. The operator then manually pivots the bolster the rest of the way to the operating position, for example, to an angle of twenty to ninety degrees and in one embodiment to about thirty-five degrees. When the bolster reaches the operating position, the bolster locks into place as described in detail below.
One alternative pivoting device embodiment includes a torsion spring that automatically pivots the bolster to the operating angle. The alternative pivoting device includes a hard stop at the predefined operating angle, e.g., at about thirty-five degrees. In either pivoting device embodiment, once the ergonomic bolster reaches the operating angle, the operator may fully open the front door and have access to the interior of the gaming device. It should also be appreciated that the bolster in either pivoting device embodiment may also be adapted to be removable.
It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a gaming device having a front door with a moveable and/or removable bolster.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a gaming device having an ergonomic bolster that does not interfere or engage adjacent gaming devices.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a gaming device having a hinged front door with a rotatable bolster.
It is yet a further advantage of the present invention to provide a gaming device having a hinged front door with a removable and/or moveable bolster that enables the operator or maintenance person to have full access to the machine.
It is still a further advantage of the present invention to provide a bolster that is easy to move.
Still further, another advantage of the present invention is to provide a movable bolster that remains in an operating position whether the main door of the gaming device is open or closed.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, elements, components, steps and processes.